‘I was thinking about the Terracotta Army when I took this shot of Birmingham swimmers in their local pool, which faced closure. They had to stand there for an hour, waiting for the sun to come out’
You can’t argue with 118 Brummies in their swimsuits: Attilio Fiumarella’s best photograph
‘I was thinking about the Terracotta Army when I took this shot of Birmingham swimmers in their local pool, which faced closure. They had to stand there for an hour, waiting for the sun to come out’ I took this image in...
I took this image in Birmingham on 20 July 2014 – part of my first professional photography project. I had moved to the city in 2013 and I would pass this building every day on the bus on my way to the city centre. I remember looking at the facades and being impressed and intrigued by the three different entrances – what were once the first class, second class and women’s entrances.
One day I decided to get off the bus and find out what the building was. The door was open, and a nice lady welcomed me in and started to explain its history. It is the Moseley Road Baths, an Edwardian-era community building. In 2014 the second pool was still operating but the gala pool, where I took this image, was already empty. The building was in need of restoration and, without funding, the council planned to shut it down for good. The woman I met there told me lots of stories about the place – people who had come to learn to swim, how it had served as a casualty station during the second world war, and how it had even been used as a dance hall. It was a very charming place with an incredible history: as soon as I saw the gala pool, I knew I had to fill the majestic empty space.
Source: The Guardian
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